In Muzaffarabad, home for thousands
of people is a tent in an overcrowded camp.
IR fundraiser Jehangir Malik travelled to Kashmir
to see the plight of the earthquake survivors.
Abida Bibi's Apology
Throughout the night, we were kept awake by
the sound of rain pounding onto the tents. It
made us realise the grim reality of those still
sleeping out in the open one month after the
disaster.
After a restless night the team ventured out
to the camp before sunrise to catch a glimpse
of what life was like for survivors. There,
we met a woman called Abida Bibi, who some years
ago fled the conflict in Kashmir and settled
in a refugee camp in the mountains. Today she
is a refugee once again.
With
tears in her eyes, she clutches a picture of
a young lady.
"This is a picture of my eldest daughter,
Anisa. She is holding up a trophy she won at
school. Now we do not know where her body is.
"They found a body of a girl in Islamabad
washed up in the river, it might be her but
who knows. So many people fell in the river.
If only we could find her body, maybe that would
give us some peace of mind. I never had a chance
to bury her properly.
"She used to do everything for us, even
the work of men. We remember our daughter, what
else can we do?"
Swallowed by the Earth
Describing the frightening scenes of the quake,
Abida says, "Nothing like this has ever
happened before. None of our forefathers ever
warned us that something like this could happen.
"We are still finding the bodies of our
relatives, even a month after the earthquake.
There are many that we haven’t been able
to find.
"We dig up the ground and find their body
parts: hands, feet and heads. Many fell into
the river.
Abida described how the menfolk tried to save
the women and children as the ground opened
up, but there was little they could do.
"No one could help anyone else. People
were literally being swallowed by the earth,
then it would shake again and they would be
spat out of it. What can we tell you of what
we saw?"
Help finally arriving
The sheer scale of the disaster has meant that
for many people, aid has been slow to arrive.
Despite everything, survivors like Abida Bibi
are as concerned about others as they are about
themselves.
"We spent many days without blankets or
tents. But it is not the fault of any organisation
or government. Hundreds of thousands of people
have been left with nothing, how can they take
care of everyone quickly? We aren't the only
ones who have suffered loss.
"We are being helped, we get food and
water, and Islamic Relief has given us a tent.
There are many people who still sleep underneath
the sky."
Apology
As we prepare to leave her tent to visit other
families in the mountains, she apologises that
there is nothing she can offer us to eat; instead,
she offers us a cup of tea. We refuse politely.
With another apology, Abida leaves one last
imprint on our hearts, "I'm sorry we have
made this problem for you and that you have
to come here to help us."
"Tell the people who donated that you
have helped us much. We have nothing to give
back to them, we have nothing at all. We thank
you very much for coming here and helping us
however you can."
You can help by making an
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